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The San Francisco Giants were called the “best trade fit” for St. Louis Cardinals All-Star Brendan Donovan.
Spring training is around the corner for all MLB teams. As far as the San Francisco Giants go, their first pitchers and catchers’ workout is scheduled for February 10. Their first full squad workout is five days later.
The biggest free agent pitcher remaining is Houston Astros left-hander Framber Valdez. The Giants have been linked to him multiple times this offseason, but no deal has come close to being done. San Francisco’s starting rotation is set, for now, but the case could be made that they could use another arm like Valdez.
There are some other free agent pitchers still available that would help out the Giants’ rotation. One name still available is right-hander Zac Gallen of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Gallen would like to return to Arizona. If he doesn’t, San Francisco was listed as a top landing spot for him.
San Francisco Giants Listed as a Second-Best Landing Spot for Zac Gallen
Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report listed the top landing spots for Gallen. The San Diego Padres were listed as the top spot, but second was the Giants. Currently, San Francisco’s starting rotation is penciled in as Logan Webb, Robbie Ray, Tyler Mahle, Adrian Houser, and Landen Roupp. There certainly is room to add Gallen and bump Roupp of someone else out of the rotation.
“Even after signing Tyler Mahle (1/$10M) and Adrian Houser (2/$22M) to shore up the rotation, the Giants still have Landen Roupp (22 GS, 3.80 ERA, 1.48 WHIP) and Hayden Birdsong (21 G, 10 GS, 4.80 ERA, 1.49 WHIP) as the leading candidates to compete for the final rotation spot. There is some low-cost upside in that duo, but if the Giants want to make any headway in the NL West race, they might be better utilized as depth,” wrote Reuter.
Mahle is certainly a low-risk, high-reward move for the Giants, but his health is going to be a concern. Houser is a quiet addition who adds depth. However, San Francisco adding Gallen would move the needle in terms of the depth of the rotation.
Signing Zac Gallen Would Pluck Him From Division Rivals
If the Giants decided to sign Gallen, it would keep him away from the Diamondbacks and Padres. Last season for the Diamondbacks, he went 13-15 in 33 starts with a career-high 4.83 ERA in 192 innings with 175 strikeouts. His WAR dropped to 1.1, the lowest of his career.
“The Giants have been linked to Gallen as recently as late January by Jim Bowden of The Athletic, and it would be a great landing spot for both team and player. He would not need to be more than a quality No. 3 starter to be an upgrade for the Giants, and a pitcher-friendly park could be a nice assist in rebuilding his value,” Reuter wrote.
According to Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors, Gallen would likely command a two-year deal worth around $22 million a year. He turned that down from the Diamondbacks earlier this offseason in a qualifying offer. San Francisco could include an opt-out after this season.
Gallen will likely sign before pitchers and catchers report next week. The question is, where will that be? The Giants are a team that makes sense, but will they do it?
Scott Roche Scott Roche covers college football, NFL, NBA and MLB for Heavy.com and has three decades of sports writing, covering everything from college to professional sports. More about Scott Roche
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